In a shifting arrangement described in German Patent Document DE-A 38 07 881, upon which the above-mentioned parent application is based, good results are achieved with respect to the gear shifting possibilities by means of the selector lever. These gear shifting possibilities include a first shifting path for automatic transmission and a second shifting path for individual gear shift operation.
An object of the present invention is to further improve a shifting arrangement for an automatic transmission having a selector lever that can be adjusted in two shifting paths so that the change-over from the first shifting path to the second shifting path and vice versa is operationally reliable while keeping the means and expenditures acceptable. However, it should also be ensured that the sensors which are controlled by the selector lever in the individual gear shift shifting path and the elements of the selector lever which cause the neutral center position are constructed and arranged in an operationally appropriate manner and are simple in their construction.
This and other objects are achieved by the present invention which provides a shifting arrangement for an automatic transmission of a motor vehicle which is influenced by an electronic control unit comprising a selector lever pivotable in a first shifting path to select several operating positions and automatically shifting transmission gears. The selector lever is movable via a transverse path into a second shifting path parallel with respect to the first shifting path, a pivoting of the selector lever in a first direction from a neutral center position in the second shifting path causing an upshifting by one gear and a pivoting in a second direction from the neutral center position causing a downshifting by one gear, the selector lever returning to the neutral center position after a shifting operation in the second shifting path. A first switch is arranged so as to be actuable by the pivoting of the selector lever in the first direction to cause the upshifting. A second switch is arranged so as to be actuable by the pivoting of the selector lever in the second direction to cause the downshifting. A first device interacts with the first switch to actuate the first switch, while a second device interacts with the second switch to actuate the second switch. The first and second devices each includes a pin and a spring that loads the pin against the selector lever in the direction of the neutral center position.
One of the advantages achieved by the present invention is that the devices comprising the pins and springs, on the one hand, hold the selector lever well in its neutral center position and, on the other hand, securely actuate the corresponding electrical switches during the upshifting and the return shifting. The devices as well as the switches are simple inexpensive components which - if necessary, together with additional contact devices - can easily be mounted on the bearing plate which, together with the mentioned switches and contact devices, may from a prefabricated component.
For generating a defined pressure point at the selector lever, the pins actuate the switches in a force optimum of the springs. As a result, the driver obtains perceptible information concerning the correct pivoting of the selector lever and connecting of a desired individual gear.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.